It's a nice day...why not shoot off rockets?

Phil's class was shooting off rockets as part of a project, so Adam and I decided to go along to watch since it was such a nice day - in the high 50s.

Here is the rocket Phil made.  He let me choose the colors, so I chose purple and yellow, of course, for the Vikings.  Those are range charts in the background.  I have no idea what they mean, but apparently it helps them know what angles to use when shooting the rocket off.

Our friend Andy let his daughter Sarah push the launch button for his rocket.  Future rocketeer?

Phil getting his set up to launch.  These guys are serious!  They use a protractor to get the angle right.

Phil with the countdown...3...2...1...blast off!

Phil's rocket successfully launched multiple times and needed only minimal repair between launches.

Speaking of future rocketeers, Adam was officially named the youngest member of the launch team.  He was quite impressed with the whole ordeal.

Wowzers-Three Months Old!

Adam is three months old today! (February 26, that is.  It's posting this as the 25 since I started the post yesterday.)  He has had many new experiences and acquired some new skills that we want to share with you.

He has mastered lifting his head and has become such a happy baby.  His tummy troubles have pretty much subsided (he still farts up a storm, though, don't worry).  He had his follow up appointment yesterday and his surgery was a complete success and he is fully recovered!  He now has a very nice "iny" bellybutton.

The apple next to him is one of his favorite toys, and one that I played with when I was a baby.  I'm so glad my mom saved it for me, since I don't think they make them anymore.  It jingles when he bats it over and then turns itself upright again for more fun.  It's the first toy he really began interacting with.

He has become a bit of a drooler, but it's not too bad yet, and he doesn't seem too embarrassed by it.

He just started this a few days ago.  He's been able to bear weight for a while, but in the last couple of days, he's been able to do it for a lot longer and he really seems to enjoy it.  This is good, since he is preparing to be the ring bearer in Uncle Matty and Aunt Jessica's wedding!

Here is a little clip of him playing on his mat.  He has discovered his hands!  Up until this month, he would just bat around, but now he stares at his hand frequently and really concentrates on touching and grabbing his toys.  He's beginning to learn that he can actually do things and interact with his environment.

In other news:

1. At the doctor on Monday, he weighed 15 lbs. 2 oz. and was 25.25 inches long.  He is in the 94th percentile for both height and weight.  The doctor said he is "very nicely proportioned." 

2. He had his first cold last week and is still getting over it, but it hasn't been too bad for him.

3.  His favorite sound to make is "goo."

4.  He likes to sit in his bouncy chair on the kitchen table and listen to music while Phil and I eat dinner.

5. Phil sent me flowers yesterday just because.  This has nothing to do with Adam, but I just love my husband.

Tummy Time = Fun Time

A lot of babies don't like tummy time, but Adam has never seemed to mind it.  Up until about a week ago, however, he was more interested in sucking on the mat or blanket than actually doing anything or looking around.  This week, we've made some big progress with lifting his head.  He also moves his legs like he wants to crawl.  He can't do that yet, but he does manage to nudge himself around a little bit.

You'll notice he's particularly interested in the orange cat.  It looks just like HIS orange cat...only nicer.

Look at that focus!

Adam and Daddy Talk Basketball

Adam has really been expanding his repertoire of sounds in his attempts to communicate with us.  He and Phil have these great heart to hearts...this one about basketball, but my favorite is when they talk about the economy.  I promise you'll get to see him playing with Mama one of these days! 

Dana, Phil, and Adam get a new toy

As you can see, we got a new toy to play with. Filiming Adam is a two-person job. I'm distracting the little guy while Dana films him. Otherwise he just stares at the camera. I'm already seeing a career in The Industry for him.

Mama's Sweethearts

This is the first year I have gotten to celebrate Valentine's Day with TWO great men :)  Phil and I celebrated early this year with a family dinner at Olive Garden.  We figured it would be less crowded, and since it was Adam's FIRST TIME in a restaurant, we weren't sure how it would go.  He did great and we had a wonderful Valentine's dinner complete with wine and appetizer.

On the drive home, our low expectations for the evening were revealed through statements such as, "wow, we actually got to finish our meals" "that was actually semi-relaxing."  I guess we need to have more faith in our son!  

A Baby Bit of Um Ya Ya!

I don't think he quite realizes just how cool he is when he wears his Ole gear, but at least he looks cute...

Um Ya Ya!

Surgery!

Monday, February 2, was Adam's surgery to repair a couple of hernias.  There actually ended up being three once the Doctor got inside there -- one umbilical and two lower near his groin.  The surgery was successful, and Adam is now at home recovering.  We felt so lifted up in prayer, and we are so thankful for everyone's care for Adam and support.  We really felt like God placed many people in our path during the process, giving us exactly what we needed when we needed it.  His Doctor, Dr. Christian, was wonderful and gave us a lot of confidence, and his nurse, Rhonda, who got him ready for surgery and took care of us was exceptionally kind, which was great since I was a bit emotional as Adam was being taken back.  Adam pretty much had everyone wrapped around his finger from the moment we arrived.  They loved him!  Here are a few shots I snapped throughout the day...

Phil getting him changed into his hospital gown.  Look how tiny it is!  I started to cry when I saw it.  That's when it really became real to me -- he was having surgery.  One fun fact: They weighed him and he weighed 14 pounds, 10 ounces.  Flippin' huge!  They gave him some tylenol right before this to help him relax.  He wasn't able to be nursed after 2:30 AM, and he hated the pedialyte that we tried to give him at 4:00 AM.  We got to the hospital at 6:30 for his 8:30 surgery, so he was pretty much starving.  It was hard since we couldn't explain anything to him.   

He was actually pretty happy.  If he only knew what was ahead...

This is my first time seeing him after surgery.  He looked pale, but was doing just fine.  He usually hates the pacifier, but they had these great vanilla flavored ones that he loved.  Rhonda gave us a bunch to bring home with us.

He was hooked up to a monitor, which is what those wires coming out of the blanket are for.

His little baby IV.

It was a pretty tiring day for all involved...

It was a rough night after the local anesthetic wore off.  You'll notice that his outfit has changed color, and that would be because he puked all over himself (and Phil and me) twice--poor guy.  Our room smelled fantastic after that.  You'll also see some great scratches on his face from his IV, which is why it is now wrapped in the yellow gauze.  He was looking a little rough.

After the rough time overnight, Dr. Christian came to see us in the morning and gave him some tylenol with codine to help him with the pain.  Here he is all doped up and happy to be going home.  They gave him a book as a little gift momento, and you can also see his super cool band aid from where his IV was.  It had alligators on it.

We are now at home, and he's doing much better with the new drugs.  Hopfully we won't have to use them for too long.  I think it is also just helping him to be back in his familiar surroundings.  Thanks, everyone, for your encouraging notes, thoughts, and prayers.  We are so glad this is behind us and everything turned out well.  Please continue to pray for him while he recovers.  What a brave little guy!  

Super Sunday!

This past Sunday was a super day for our family!  We wanted to show Adam a good time since he would have his surgery the next day.

First up was church.  It was our first time attending since he was born.  He did great just hanging out in the back row with us in his car seat.  He liked the music and actually went to sleep.  Everyone loved him, and we actually met some new friends with everyone coming up to see him.  It made us appreciate our church even more with all the warm and loving people.

Next, Adam attended his first Super Bowl party.  It was fun for me to finally meet a lot of Phil's friends from school.  Very nice guys.  We were cheering for the Cardinals, and I sort of blame their loss on Adam.  He fell asleep and, as you can see, he wasn't really pulling his weight with the cheering.

What a super day!

Parenting is a Balancing Act

Phil pulls it off nicely...

Adam loving his Daddy.